


A Meeting With Paradox

by Winged_Kitsune



Series: The Hero Squad [1]
Category: Ben Ten Omniverse
Genre: Alternate Universe, Ben - Freeform, Meeting, Paradox, smoothie, talk, threat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-22
Updated: 2019-03-11
Packaged: 2019-07-01 01:46:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15764091
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Winged_Kitsune/pseuds/Winged_Kitsune
Summary: The day was still. Rook was off planet, Gwen and Kevin were still off to Gwen's college, and no baddies seemed to want to oppose the day. Everything was perfect for a payed back day off, until a visit with Professor Paradox breaks the silence.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is the second story in a mini series, The Hero Squad (dumb name, I know), the first of which is longer and will take time to be finished. This takes place after the erase of Ben's original universe, and the consequences of that are what is discussed. 
> 
> Can anyone guess the unnamed others whom Ben refers to?

Ben sat at a Mister Smoothie's table, enjoying his day off, an icy beverage in hand. The weather, while a bit on the hot side, was tolerable and made even better by the smoothie he held. For the first time in a long time, he had nothing to do. No plans, no surprise encounters with his foes or a random alien, nothing. Everything was perfect. 

Ben's smile fell as he felt the familiar tingle of energy rise within him, responding to the forming portal before it even entered an existing state. 

"Professor Paradox, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Ben asked, of bothering to turn to face the approaching other. He should have known this was coming.

"I need a word with you, Ben." He said, a deep frown on his face.

"Can't it wait? This is literally the first day off I've gotten since Gwen left for college, and I don't see any other days like this coming up, either." Ben said, finally turning to face the elder man, surprising Paradox with the annoyance in his expression. Paradox almost took a step back, startled by the strange behavior. Of all the things he expected, this was not one of them. 

Paradox calmed quickly, his expression turning to one of understanding. 

"So, you know why I'm here?" He asked, sitting down beside Ben under the shade of the provided umbrella.

"Uhha." Ben hummed in response, taking a gulp of his smoothie. 

"Then would you mind explaining to me why your original dimension is nothing but an empty void?" Paradox interrogated, still calm. Ben's swallowing of the swig was drawn out, as though he felt the matter to not be a pressing one. He was casual, too casual. 

"If you think it was empty, then you haven't been looking through it for very long." Ben told, amused, before continuing, a bit more serious.

"It was erased, but no one else remembers that." Ben stated, sounding as though he were talking of something simple and easily comprehended. Paradox didn't like it, not one bit.

"How?!" Paradox demanded, horrified. Ben opened one eye, raising a hand and signaling for the other to be patient, for he had returned the straw to his lips. He swallowed again, setting the cup down, and set his hands overtop each other. Ben's eyes drifted to his left wrist, and he spoke.

"Can't say, I never really knew. Some weird, all powerful erase box-thingy did it." He explained.

"I rebuilt my universe with Alien X, but no one believed me when I told them that. They think me delusional, can you believe that?" He asked, releasing a dark chuckle.

"None of them are the originals, only us. Funny, huh? We think so." Paradox quirked a brow at the suggested others to have made it from the first world. Well, the first version of this world. 

"Us?" Paradox asked. Ben waved a dismissive hand.

"Unimportant," Ben told "what would be is your silence. None of them know, and none of them believe, after all, ignorance is bliss, my friend." Another chuckle, the likes of which a mere imitation of mirth. 

Paradox frowned, though he was humoring the idea in his mind. Was this right? Should he play along? 

"I won't tell them, there would be no point in doing so." Paradox ensured.

"Wise man, Paradox." Ben commented, one side of his mouth raising higher in a slight smirk. It didn't take long for Paradox to understand why.

"I didn't have a choice, eh?" Paradox questioned, sensing the tension that had accumulated in the air. 

"Not really, no." Ben replied, his smirk growing. 

"I don't really like what this conversation implies." Paradox said in a cautionary tone. 

"Calm down, Paradox, it wasn't a threat." Ben assured, rolling his eyes at Paradox's supposed melodramatic attitude. 

"It was just the only logical choice for you to have made." Ben finalized, griping the smoothie cup in his hand loosely. 

"Strange, you get smarter by the day, Benjamin." Paradox commented. Ben grinned in a seemingly triumphant way.

"Obviously" Ben stated, raising his newly empty smoothie cup and eyeing it for any remaining contents. He tossed it into a nearby trash bin, standing and signaling for Paradox to do the same. 

"Want a smoothie? On me, of course."


	2. A Meeting Among Stars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so after about thirty minutes of me growing increasingly frustrated with this website's supposed policy of how short a chapter ought to be, I realized I was trying to submit it into the summary. Whoops!

-

      "Ben, you're late." Max said, looking sternly to his grandson, who had arrived nearly four hours after he had been expected. In his hand was a beverage, marking that he had gone out to eat, and had not been in any rush. 

      Ben swallowed his mouthful, "I had to stop an invasion a few towns over." Ben excused, uncaring and unapologetic. Max raised a brow, gesturing to the cup. Ben looked to it, frowning for a moment before looking to Max. "It's after noon, Grandpa. I was hungry when I was done, so I ate." Ben explained, idly rubbing at a small sore spot on his arm, obscured by his jacket. 

      "You should have called me, Ben. You can't be this irresponsible!" Max berated, astounded by the display of immaturity. 

      "Hey, I was doing my job-" 

      "But you should have called Rook, at the least! What if something had happened to you, and no one knew where you were?" 

      "I have faith in my abilities, and your guys's, I'm sure we can take anything that's handed to us." Ben dismissed. "And, besides, I didn't have my phone on me, so I couldn't call you, anyway." Ben paused, surveying the elder, "But I'll be more careful next time and try to make sure to bring my phone. Are we good?" Ben asked, smiling. Max stared at him, before sighing and adopting his own smile, albeit smaller. 

      "Yes, that about covers it." Max said, "Now, come on, you're on surveillance duty for the rest of your shift." 

-Earlier that Mornimg

      Ben's consciousness rose, like ice amidst water, as he slowly woke. He pushed himself up to a sitting position, groaning as he took notice of the stiffness of his body, a stiffness born from the scratchy, grass and pebble covered surface he had slept on. Suddenly, he realized that the stony grass was not his mattress, and that this was not his bedroom. Far more quickly, his eyes snapped about, looking around to try and establish his whereabouts. 

      A quick look to his left relayed a roofed picnic building, fare in size and decently kept, though it was void of people. A look down told him that he was atop the grass, though it was not of an especially soft sort. Many small pebbles, like shards of ground stone, served as his dusty bedding. He looked to his right, eyes widening slightly before recognition calmed him. 

      Bellwood, being a part of New York, had plenty of beaches. Even without having to venture over and gaze to the land below, he recognized the sea before him, the distant boats and the netting which outlined the swim area. It was a beach he and Gwen had frequented especially during their earlier youth, but this spot, this sparsely used spot, forgotten by most, was where had had found himself. 

      It hadn't been an especially bad spot; the view was decent and the height was fairly high, good for a cannonball, but the shallow waters and many rocks seemed to act as a rule breaker. There were better ledges, borderline cliffs, to serve the purpose of a jumping spot. There were better picnic areas without the uncomfortable grass and stones. Even so, or perhaps especially so, this spot had been his, bit why was he here? 

Ben remembered, distinctly, this area having been remodeled following a report on the local news. Among other things, one of which being a newly installed fence, a public statement and warning had been set nearly three years ago, an immediate response to a safety risk proven by someone having fallen the distance and broken an arm and several ribs by having hit the rocks below.

The raven approached the ledge, looking along the rocks and dirt, but found no hint of a fence or any other installment. Similarly, the rocks below, which had been removed, had been left untouched. Ben frowned, raising an arm and pinching hard. 'Definitely not a dream...' he thought, rubbing the sore spot of his arm. 

      "Hurting yourself is pointless, #1.111119, please reframe from doing so." A silky voice, so very similar to Ben's own, called out. Ben spun around, his movements quick. Too quick. In his haste to stand and turn, his balance was lost, nearly causing him to fall from where he had crouched. He was saved solely by a lone tendril of green light, which wrapped around his wrist and pulled him back to the grass. 

      Ben inhaled deeply, the breath having been knocked from him at the collision with the ground. "Phew, that was close." Ben breathed, looking behind himself. He looked around again, searching for the source of the voice. His eyes trained to the light still coiled around his arm. 

      On closer inspection, he found it to be of a ropey design; having been crafted from countless strings of far thinner light. The material itself reminded him faintly of Gwen's mana shield, only the color was obviously different and the consistency far thicker and cloudier. If he looked close enough, he could see ever so slightly through it, but the image was blurred. 

      He traced the whip, following its length to its source. "So, who are-oh, hi." Ben finally spotted the other person, sitting atop the roof of the picnic building. Those multicolored eyes peered through him, their uncanny vibrance stealing Ben's attention. Ben looked back to the whip, once again eyeing it, "Aren't you that 'Puppet' guy?" He asked. 

      "It's Marionette, and yes." Marionette said, holding a hand out to the side as the whip undid itself, reverting into strings before receding into his fingertips. Ben scanned the other person again, noting just how...plain he was. Save for his eyes, he looked very normal, albeit a little androgynous and slim. This was a far cry from the masked, obscured form he had met before, and the voice-no longer morphed by the mask-was far different. Even so, he still held a very distinct "Ben Tennyson", and his eyes-though abnormal-were near impossible to misplace. 

      "Well, I'm Ben-"

      "You're a Ben." Marionette corrected. 

      "And I have no idea where I am right now, how I got here, or why you're here. Mind explaining?" Ben asked, dusting himself off and trying to tame his disturbed hair, searching the ebony locks for small stones, grass, and insects. Thankfully, other than a single pebble, it was fine. 

      "Well, I am here confer with you, 17.111119." Marionette stated. 

      "Okay, you haven't answered my other questions, and I don't really like being called 1.-something, but go on." 

      "A contract is needed between you and I. I mean to make that contract now." Cayden explained. 

      "And you want a contract because...?" Ben asked. 

      "Because you're part of the group. The clan, the citadel, the Benedel, whatever name they end up choosing." 

      "One of those names sound awesome to me." Ben interjected.

      "It would help if they chose a name more respectable, more explanatory, but what word have I in such matters?" Marionette asked, ever so slightly sarcastic. He sighed, before continuing. "You met with Prism a short while ago. A day or two, I think. Prism is their unofficial leader. No matter the manner they decide to choose their leaders once the group is official, I'm sure she will lead." 

      "And you don't think she should play, at the very least, a part in that? She is the one who lead the development of the inter-dimensional communication thing." Ben reminded. 

      Marionette scowled, "Seems to me that someone is of a thicker sort. Let me remind you, 1.111119, that it is not, nor was it, a novel creation. Plenty of people, far more respectable, have created and used it. Paradox used it, Eon the Vile used it, even Vilgax used it!" Marionette reminded. She calmed, exhaling, before continuing. "We've gotten off topic. My reasoning is that you didn't have access to inter-dimensional technologies before, and now you do." Marionette pointed towards himself, "I've had it all along, and with proper backing, methods, and licensing. You have none of those. You have 'hands on learning' on how not to vomit directly after displacement, but you have no legal protection nor education for the damage you may cause. That is where I come in." He continued, his voice adopting an almost mocking undertone before returning to a more lively monotone. 

      Marionette fished something from his cargo pant's pocket, holding up a small badge, "I am a fully certified traveler and an honorary deputy of the ST Tract under authority of the Apex Empire. I can offer you leeway you would not have access to otherwise."

      "In exchange for?" 

      "Among other things, your loyalty. For my protection and any additional services in your realm, you are to align with me should anything go awry with the union. When in my realm, you may find reasonable food, shelter, and medical assistance so long as you follow a few simple rules." Marionette paused, allowing for his words to sink in. When Ben looked ready to question him further, he continued. 

      "You are to respect my authority, and that of Apex. You are not, unless in self defense, attack the other members of the contract-you will know them when you see them. And, most important of all, you are to deactivate your omnitrix, ultimatrix, or any other variant of the device, so long as you are in my realm. If you fail to do so, yours will be confiscated." 

      "No."

      "It will be compensated for with weaponry, comradeship, some form of translator, and any other needed technologies." 

      "I said 'no'." 

      "And benefits will be included for long-term membership, once your loyalty is proven, of course." Cayden said, speaking as if not hearing Ben's refusal. He slid down the slope of the roof, landing feet first on the ground. Without missing a beat, Marionette reached out his hand, which had begun to glow from the electric blue flames which had engulfed it. The blue light was beaconing, but it reminded Ben all too well of what one might expect from a demon. 

      "I'm not joining you, and I'm not giving you my omnitrix." Ben stated, his voice imposingly final. Cayden stared at him, lips pressing into a thin, disapproving line. 

"You are not the first to refuse." Marionette said softly, eyes distant. In an instant, the blaze had vanished, the alternate retracted his arm, flames recessing as if into his skin. He whipped his hand in a slight arc, a card appearing in his grasp from the nothing it had been moments before. A faint green glow was emitted from the card, but the light was gone within a blink. Marionette extended his arm once more, this time offering the conjured plastic. "If you ever change your mind..." Marionette's eyes flashed from a bright refulgence, "I'll be around." 

Marionette engulfed into light and a green-tinged mist, which then imploded before disappearing. Ben coughed, fanning the air to rid it of the odd mix of citrus and flower nectar which had flooded his lunges. After a moment, the scent lessened, and the air thinned. Ben looked around, as if to see if the strange other would reappear nearby. When the svelte brunette went unseen, Ben relaxed. He caught sight of the discarded card, which shone with a iridescence. 

Ben starred at it, instantly noticing the large green X inscribed to its surface. Other than that, however, it was plain. Suddenly, Ben jolted, as if from a shockwave, his vision erupting with light. Ben woke up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments, theories, ideas? Please share! I'd love to see what you think! Who is this Marionette? What is his deal? (Pun unintended) What is this union? Read on, my fine readers! 
> 
> -WK


End file.
